Michele Kearney's Nuclear Wire: Renewable

Showing posts with label Renewable. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Comparing the costs of intermittent and dispatchable electricity generating technologies

http://econ-www.mit.edu/files/6317

ABSTRACT

Economic evaluations of alternative electric generating technologies typically rely on comparisons between their expected life-cycle production costs per unit of electricity supplied. The standard life-cycle cost metric utilized is the “levelized cost” per MWh supplied. This paper demonstrates that this metric is inappropriate for comparing intermittent generating technologies like wind and solar with dispatchable generating technologies like nuclear, gas combined cycle, and coal. Levelized cost comparisons are a misleading metric for comparing intermittent and dispatchable generating technologies because they fail to take into account differences in the production profiles of intermittent and dispatchable generating technologies and the associated large variations in the market value of the electricity they supply. Levelized cost comparisons overvalue intermittent generating technologies compared to dispatchable base load generating technologies. They also overvalue wind generating technologies compared to solar generating technologies. Integrating differences in production profiles, the associated variations in the market value of the electricity supplied, and life-cycle costs associated with different generating

technologies is necessary to provide meaningful comparisons between them. This market-based framework also has implications for the appropriate design of procurement auctions created to implement renewable energy procurement mandates, the efficient structure of production tax credits for renewable energy, and the evaluation of the additional costs of integrating intermittent generation into electric power networks.

Monday, November 15, 2010

GE Executive Outlines Opportunity For Transformation Of US Energy Future

The evolution of a smarter power grid in the United States and the resulting impact it could have on the economy and environment were highlighted in a keynote address by GE's Bob Gilligan at the Advanced Energy 2010 Conference. Gilligan explained how even conservative adoptions of technology solutions could enable Americans to sustain and improve their energy-dependent lifestyles. "While revolutionary energy technologies are developed each day, the way we apply them to modernize and nurture our electrical infrastructure is really more of an evolution than a revolution," said Bob Gilligan, vice president-digital energy for GE Energy Services.
"What's important is taking steps today to lay the foundation for our growing energy appetite. We can then sustain ongoing efforts to improve our energy landscape."
Using conservative technology growth estimates, Gilligan laid out a scenario where the total U.S. energy consumption and emissions saved between 2010 and 2030 could exceed the entire electrical consumption and electrical CO2 output for all of 2010.i "The net result would be like 2010 never happened," he explained.
In addition to the energy and pollution savings, Gilligan's scenario saw the creation of 140,000 sustainable new jobs and an electrical landscape that includes 3.3 billion fewer customer outage minutes. These power reliability improvements could result in savings of $65.7 billion from reduced power interruptions by 2030.
Gilligan supported his call for an energy evolution with a bevy of facts about the future of energy, including:
+ Growing cities that will house more than 60 percent of the world's population and consume a vast majority of its power by 2030 cannot rely on an infrastructure designed a century ago
+ Global electricity demand is forecasted to increase 75 percent by 2030
+ Energy costs are increasing worldwide; US rates increased an average of 42 percent between 2000 and 2007
+ More than 40 percent of current environmental emissions are from electric generation
+ Approximately half of the transformer assets in the U.S. electrical infrastructure are at or approaching the end of their design life
"The good news is that we are not talking gloom and doom," Gilligan said.
"Our electrical future can be a story of potential, opportunity and global competitive advantage. With increased reliability, efficiency and sustainability, we'll be able to power traditional economic growth and be ready for the next generation of life-changing technology. We can do it by taking measured, affordable evolutionary steps. However, we, as a country, must act today."
Gilligan cited electric cars, along with increasing levels of wind and solar energy, as examples of technology-enabled advances on the not-too-distant horizon.http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/GE_Executive_Outlines_Opportunity_For_Transformation_Of_US_Energy_Future_999.html

Friday, October 22, 2010

Tidal Power: The Next Wave? By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL

Over the next few years, we can expect to see huge advances in our ability to harness power from the ocean’s waves and tides, a new report from IHS Emerging Energy Research, a Cambridge, Mass., consulting firm, predicts.

Getty Images A tidal energy turbine developed by Atlantis Resources.

Until recently, that sector has had limited popularity and mixed success, even as the number of installations generating power from other renewable resources like the wind, sun and biomass has grown rapidly.
“The global ocean energy sector is at a turning point,” the company’s report says. More than 45 wave and tidal prototypes are expected to be ocean-tested in 2010 and 2011. Only nine were tested in 2009.
More important, perhaps, while previous test projects tended to be operated by small, boutique firms, the giants of hydropower, which have decades of experience drawing power from rivers, are now getting into the ocean business. More at:

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/tidal-power-the-next-wave/?partner=rss&emc=rss

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Is the Obama Administration Really Serious About Nuclear Power? October 14, 2010 Scott Thomasson view bio Scott Thomasson is the domestic policy director for the Progressive Policy Institute. by Scott Thomasson

By all accounts, this controversy appears to be simply a fight between budget bureaucrats that needs to be hashed out publicly and resolved. But a less benign interpretation might suggest a deliberate bias among those in the administration in favor of spending loan guarantee dollars on renewable energy at the expense of nuclear projects.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Wave Power Delivers Electricity to US Grid For First Time by Matthew McDermot

Science & Technology (alternative energy)

photo: Ocean Power Technologies
While wave power often seems like the poor cousin of the renewable energy world, and frankly doesn't have the practical potential of wind or solar power, tapping the power of the sea does have its place and this next one is worth a bit of hand clapping: One of Ocean Power Technologies' PowerBuoys can claim to be the first wave power device to deliver electricity to the US grid.
As Renewable Energy World reports:

OPT's PB40 PowerBuoy was hooked up to the grid at the Marine Corps Base Hawaii as part of the firm's program with the US Navy to test wave energy technology. The connection demonstrates the device's ability to produce utility-grade renewable energy that can be transmitted to the grid according to international and national standards, says the firm.

The PowerBuoy was deployed three-quarters of a mile off the coast of Oahu last year and has produced power for more than 4,400 hours of operation. As for environmental impact, independent evaluation has found the PowerBuoy to have no significant impact. All good news, if a small step forward.
power buoy size comparison chart

Comparison of various sized PowerBuoys next to a wind turbine via OPT.
If you're unfamiliar with how the OPT's PowerBuoy's work, this passage from 2008 here on TreeHugger will fill in some of the knowledge gap:

While most tidal power uses a underwater mounted turbine of some sort the Power Buoy relies instead on the rising and falling of the waves to generate power. Power is transmitted to the shore via underwater cable. OPT says that the a 10 MW power station using this technology would occupy 12.5 hectares of ocean. Theoretically the technology is scalable to 100 MW power stations, according to OPT's website.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Installing Solar Fields On Brownfield Sites Across North America

File image

by Staff Writers Shelton CT (SPX) Sep 23, 2010 OPEL Solar and TRUENORTH Solar and Environmental have announced a strategic partnership to install utility-scale solar fields on brownfield sites across North America that have been deemed otherwise unusable. Brownfield sites are generally defined as abandoned or underused industrial and commercial facilities available for re-use. Expansion or redevelopment of such sites are usually complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination.
By installing solar installations on urban brownfield sites, cities and municipalities will be able to transform blighted, unusable areas of land into productive green energy fields that will address the growing need for energy in urban areas as well as help utilities address clean energy mandates.
"Turning brownfields into solar fields represents more than just a tremendous business opportunity for OPEL Solar and TRUENORTH," stated OPEL Solar's CEO, Leon M. Pierhal, "It's a way for both companies to give back to these communities, generate badly needed municipal revenues by generating green energy and help revitalize blighted and unusable urban land."
"At the same time, we see this initiative as another example of our strategy to enhance shareholder value by continuing to uncover new, expanded market opportunities for providing our solar technology expertise," Pierhal continued.
OPEL's solar solutions for these fields includes a total 'package' of services such as land assessment, engineering, EPA assistance, remediation or mitigation of the land, installation, utility company cutover and funding or power purchase agreement ("PPA") assistance.
OPEL Solar will be providing their patented HCPV solar panels and industry-leading advanced tracker systems to the projects while TRUENORTH Solar will handle the land remediation and installation.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated that site cleanup revenue, for the companies doing the clean-up, can amount to approximately $6-8 billion annually as experts forecast that there may be as many as 4,000 brownfields in the United States, roughly the equivalent of 30,000 football fields. Add in Superfund sites and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act sites and the total jumps to more than 14 million acres that could be redeveloped as renewable energy sites.
"TRUENORTH principals see great potential for solar energy and its ability to bring renewable energy to communities throughout North America at a reasonable cost. At the same time we also see the untapped potential for using brownfields as a business development asset for creating clean energy sites," said Roland J. Harris, a Principal of TRUENORTH Solar and Environmental LLC.
"We are very committed to this line of business. In fact three companies formed TRUENORTH exclusively for capitalizing on the solar energy opportunity while also enabling the remediation of brownfields."
"We want to work exclusively with OPEL Solar in New England to transform the land into solar energy fields. We know that OPEL Solar has the expertise to manage the total project and provide the superior products to offer the customers the optimal solar energy solution," echoed Timothy Bartha, another Principal of TRUENORTH.
OPEL Solar intends to be a leading solar brownfield solution provider, according to Pierhal. To that end, OPEL Solar is looking for additional companies like TRUENORTH to be strategically placed throughout North America, and OPEL Solar plans to announce such alliances as they develop.
"Complemented by several world-class partners who share our vision and desire to give back, OPEL Solar can manage the process of transformation for brownfields for communities and agencies that simply do not know where to begin," stated Pierhal.
"Not only will it generate revenue for OPEL and bring positive land remediation for communities across North America, it will also generate jobs for North Americans and get local manufacturers and suppliers moving again to support the solar development of brownfields."
Pierhal commented that since announcing OPEL Solar's Brownfield Initiative, he has received calls from around the world asking for assistance in establishing similar directives.
As the commitment to rejuvenate otherwise 'dead' land deepens, a broad spectrum of federal and state government grants, financing and investment incentives are available for redevelopment and remediation of these sites. A sample of the primary federal agencies involved includes: EPA, DOE, Department of Defense, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forestry Services, Bureau of Mines and the Bureau of Reclamation.

http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Installing_Solar_Fields_On_Brownfield_Sites_Across_North_America_999.html

Saturday, September 18, 2010

US wants big, revolutionary energy storage systems Renewable energy places many challenges on electrical grid

Seal of the United States Department of Energy.

Image via WikipediaLooking for a major new ways to harness wind, solar and other evolving renewable energy, the US Department of Energy today issued a call for advanced large-scale energy storage system technology.
The DOE said the goal of its solicitation is to identify and prove new concepts for applied research in materials chemistry, battery components, battery designs and any technologies that will lead to breakthroughs in grid energy storage.
10 hot energy projects that could electrify the world
Such technology will be focused on novel materials, electrodes, electrolytes, membranes and other components, along with new concepts for ultra low cost, high efficiency and long lasting energy storage systems. Emphasis is placed on highly innovative research proposals in areas that have the potential to have strong impact on large-scale energy storage in the future, the DOE stated.
The DOE went on to say the variable and stochastic nature of renewable sources makes solar and wind power difficult to manage. To effectively use the intermittent renewable energy and enable its delivery, large-scale electrical energy storage is required. For example, storage systems operating near an intermittent, renewable wind energy source can smooth out wind variability and, if of sufficient scale, store off peak wind energy, the DOE stated.
Big energy storage is an effective tool to improve the reliability, stability, and efficiency of the envisioned electrical grid of the future. This grid will be significantly impacted by new demands, such as plug-in electrical vehicles, increased use of renewable energies, and smart grid controls. Large scale storage technology could shave the peaks from a user or utility load profile, increase asset utilization and delay utility upgrades, decrease fossil fuel use and provide high levels of power quality, while increasing grid stability. In addition, distributed energy storage near load centers can reduce congestion on both the distribution and transmission systems, the DOE stated.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Journal Special Report Focuses on Business Side of Energy

Journal Special Report Focuses on Business Side of Energy

The Wall Street Journal today published a 13-article special report on investment in the energy and electric industries and various forms of generating power. The articles were led by Liam Denning's analysis that, as he wrote, "there's money to be made in the energy business--if you know where to look."

Articles examined the trend toward switching to natural gas and away from coal to generate power, hydropower and geothermal, backyard wind turbines and leasing solar panels, and companies on the cutting edge of R&D into fuel cells, algae, the smart grid, lightweight gasoline-powered cars and diesel.

Wall Street Journal (editor's note), (power investing), (backyard turbines), (hydropower), (fuel cells), (quitting coal), (geothermal), (wind business), (algae), (solar leasing), (smart grid investing), (lightweight engines), (diesel), Sept. 13.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Special Report: Energy Nuclear Energy Loses Cost Advantage By DIANA S. POWERS

PARIS — Solar photovoltaic systems have long been painted as a clean way to generate electricity, but expensive compared with other alternatives to oil, like nuclear power. No longer. In a “historic crossover,” the costs of solar photovoltaic systems have declined to the point where they are lower than the rising projected costs of new nuclear plants, according to a paper published this month.
“Solar photovoltaics have joined the ranks of lower-cost alternatives to new nuclear plants,” John O. Blackburn, a professor of economics at Duke University, in North Carolina, and Sam Cunningham, a graduate student, wrote in the paper, “Solar and Nuclear Costs — The Historic Crossover.”
This crossover occurred at 16 cents per kilowatt hour, they said. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/27/business/global/27iht-renuke.html